India to Bring Tejas Fighters and BrahMos Missiles to Dubai Airshow 2025 in a Major Export Push
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India is sending a senior delegation and a full spectrum of defense platforms, including the Tejas fighter and BrahMos missile, to the Dubai Airshow 2025. The visit aims to deepen ties with the UAE and position India as a rising supplier in Gulf, Asian and African defense markets.
According to the Press Information Bureau of India, on 16 November 2025, Raksha Rajya Mantri (Hindi term for Minister of State for Defence) Sanjay Seth will lead a high-level delegation to the Dubai Air Show 2025 from 17 to 18 November, inaugurating an India Pavilion and holding bilateral talks with his UAE counterpart. The contingent brings together officials from the Ministry of Defence, Defence Production, External Affairs and the armed forces, supported by a dense line-up of Indian industry. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, DRDO and a cluster of private firms and start-ups will be joined on the tarmac by the Indian Air Force’s Suryakiran aerobatic team and LCA Tejas fighters, signaling that New Delhi is treating Dubai as a serious export stage rather than a courtesy appearance.Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link
India may showcase the LCA Tejas, BrahMos missile and a full spectrum of indigenous combat systems at Dubai Airshow 2025, using the Gulf’s premier aerospace stage to push new defense exports and deepen strategic ties with the UAE (Picture source: Indian Air Force).
The Dubai airshow sits at the crossroads of the Gulf, Africa and South Asia, drawing more than a thousand exhibitors and senior delegations that increasingly look beyond traditional Western suppliers. India arrives after several years of record defense exports and an official target to roughly double them by the end of the decade, with policy anchored in the “Make in India, Make for the World” framework. The India–UAE relationship has deepened through a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement and growing cooperation in maritime security, aerospace and technology, making the Emirati market both a customer and a gateway to the wider region.
At the center of India’s flying message is the LCA Tejas Mk 1A, presented as a compact 4.5-generation multirole fighter. The single-engine aircraft uses a GE F404 afterburning turbofan that pushes it close to Mach 1.8, with a service ceiling above 16 kilometers. A delta wing and digital flight control system give high agility and a nine g envelope, while nine hardpoints allow a weapons load of more than five tons that includes short and beyond visual range air-to-air missiles, precision guided bombs and stand-off weapons. With an active electronically scanned array radar, indigenous electronic warfare suite and relatively modest operating costs, Tejas offers an attractive package for air forces needing modern capability without the price or infrastructure burden of heavy twin-engine fighters.
Tejas has moved into frontline service with the Indian Air Force, replacing aging MiG-21s and flying regular missions along the western and northern sectors. That experience, including deployments to austere forward bases, is a selling point in Dubai. Export interest has previously surfaced from Malaysia, Egypt, Argentina and others, even if not all campaigns have gone India’s way. The Gulf, Southeast Asia and parts of Africa remain realistic markets for Tejas as a point defence fighter, lead in fighter trainer or supplement to heavier fleets, particularly if India is willing to integrate local weapons, sensors and joint production arrangements with partners such as the UAE.
If Tejas is the visible symbol in the sky, the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile remains India’s most mature export calling card on the ground. The ramjet-powered missile flies at around Mach 2.8 to 3, with sea-skimming profiles that can drop to single-digit meters over the water and an export range near 290 kilometers. Its 200 to 300 kilogram warhead, high accuracy and multi-platform launch options from ships, shore batteries and aircraft give customers a potent anti-access and coastal defense tool. The Philippines contract for BrahMos coastal batteries, followed by deliveries and training, demonstrates that India can execute a complex missile export in an active security environment, something that potential buyers in Indonesia, Vietnam and the Gulf will watch closely.
Around these flagship systems, India is likely to spotlight an increasingly complete air combat ecosystem. The Astra beyond visual range air-to-air missile gives Tejas and Su 30MKI a homegrown weapon capable of long-range, high-speed engagements, while the Quick Reaction Surface to Air Missile and the Akash family of air defence systems offer mobile, layered protection against aircraft, drones and cruise missiles. The Netra airborne early warning and control aircraft, based on a regional jet platform with a dorsal radar array, provides persistent airspace surveillance at a price point that smaller air forces can contemplate. Together, these systems illustrate how India wants to sell not only individual products but integrated air and missile defence architectures.
Newer platforms are also likely to feature in models or multimedia presentations. The TAPAS BH 201 medium altitude long endurance unmanned aerial vehicle, with endurance measured in dozens of hours and a mix of electro-optical and SIGINT payloads, gives a taste of India’s ambitions in the ISR and armed drone segment. The Arudhra medium power radar and the HTT 40 basic trainer aircraft show that India is deliberately filling out the radar and pilot training segments, where many developing air forces still rely on older imported fleets. Private companies and start-ups, from electronics to hydraulics and software, will try to position themselves as partners for joint development and local assembly in Gulf or African markets.
From an export perspective, Southeast Asian states seek affordable ways to complicate Chinese military planning and secure their coastlines. Gulf countries want multi-layered air defence, long-range precision strike and co-production options that give them more technological sovereignty. African and Latin American air forces are looking for reliable, politically flexible suppliers that can bundle financing, training and industrial participation. India offers competitive pricing, willingness to share technology and a non-aligned political profile that many governments find attractive.
Dubai Airshow 2025 becomes a test of India’s claim that it is no longer just one of the world’s largest arms importers, but an emerging supplier with credible combat systems and an industrial base ready to plug into regional ecosystems. The bilateral talks led by Sanjay Seth, the industry round tables and the flying displays by Tejas and Suryakiran together will form a coordinated pitch to that effect.
Written by Evan Lerouvillois, Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group.
Evan studied International Relations, and quickly specialized in defense and security. He is particularly interested in the influence of the defense sector on global geopolitics, and analyzes how technological innovations in defense, arms export contracts, and military strategies influence the international geopolitical scene.
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India is sending a senior delegation and a full spectrum of defense platforms, including the Tejas fighter and BrahMos missile, to the Dubai Airshow 2025. The visit aims to deepen ties with the UAE and position India as a rising supplier in Gulf, Asian and African defense markets.
According to the Press Information Bureau of India, on 16 November 2025, Raksha Rajya Mantri (Hindi term for Minister of State for Defence) Sanjay Seth will lead a high-level delegation to the Dubai Air Show 2025 from 17 to 18 November, inaugurating an India Pavilion and holding bilateral talks with his UAE counterpart. The contingent brings together officials from the Ministry of Defence, Defence Production, External Affairs and the armed forces, supported by a dense line-up of Indian industry. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, DRDO and a cluster of private firms and start-ups will be joined on the tarmac by the Indian Air Force’s Suryakiran aerobatic team and LCA Tejas fighters, signaling that New Delhi is treating Dubai as a serious export stage rather than a courtesy appearance.
Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link
India may showcase the LCA Tejas, BrahMos missile and a full spectrum of indigenous combat systems at Dubai Airshow 2025, using the Gulf’s premier aerospace stage to push new defense exports and deepen strategic ties with the UAE (Picture source: Indian Air Force).
The Dubai airshow sits at the crossroads of the Gulf, Africa and South Asia, drawing more than a thousand exhibitors and senior delegations that increasingly look beyond traditional Western suppliers. India arrives after several years of record defense exports and an official target to roughly double them by the end of the decade, with policy anchored in the “Make in India, Make for the World” framework. The India–UAE relationship has deepened through a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement and growing cooperation in maritime security, aerospace and technology, making the Emirati market both a customer and a gateway to the wider region.
At the center of India’s flying message is the LCA Tejas Mk 1A, presented as a compact 4.5-generation multirole fighter. The single-engine aircraft uses a GE F404 afterburning turbofan that pushes it close to Mach 1.8, with a service ceiling above 16 kilometers. A delta wing and digital flight control system give high agility and a nine g envelope, while nine hardpoints allow a weapons load of more than five tons that includes short and beyond visual range air-to-air missiles, precision guided bombs and stand-off weapons. With an active electronically scanned array radar, indigenous electronic warfare suite and relatively modest operating costs, Tejas offers an attractive package for air forces needing modern capability without the price or infrastructure burden of heavy twin-engine fighters.
Tejas has moved into frontline service with the Indian Air Force, replacing aging MiG-21s and flying regular missions along the western and northern sectors. That experience, including deployments to austere forward bases, is a selling point in Dubai. Export interest has previously surfaced from Malaysia, Egypt, Argentina and others, even if not all campaigns have gone India’s way. The Gulf, Southeast Asia and parts of Africa remain realistic markets for Tejas as a point defence fighter, lead in fighter trainer or supplement to heavier fleets, particularly if India is willing to integrate local weapons, sensors and joint production arrangements with partners such as the UAE.
If Tejas is the visible symbol in the sky, the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile remains India’s most mature export calling card on the ground. The ramjet-powered missile flies at around Mach 2.8 to 3, with sea-skimming profiles that can drop to single-digit meters over the water and an export range near 290 kilometers. Its 200 to 300 kilogram warhead, high accuracy and multi-platform launch options from ships, shore batteries and aircraft give customers a potent anti-access and coastal defense tool. The Philippines contract for BrahMos coastal batteries, followed by deliveries and training, demonstrates that India can execute a complex missile export in an active security environment, something that potential buyers in Indonesia, Vietnam and the Gulf will watch closely.
Around these flagship systems, India is likely to spotlight an increasingly complete air combat ecosystem. The Astra beyond visual range air-to-air missile gives Tejas and Su 30MKI a homegrown weapon capable of long-range, high-speed engagements, while the Quick Reaction Surface to Air Missile and the Akash family of air defence systems offer mobile, layered protection against aircraft, drones and cruise missiles. The Netra airborne early warning and control aircraft, based on a regional jet platform with a dorsal radar array, provides persistent airspace surveillance at a price point that smaller air forces can contemplate. Together, these systems illustrate how India wants to sell not only individual products but integrated air and missile defence architectures.
Newer platforms are also likely to feature in models or multimedia presentations. The TAPAS BH 201 medium altitude long endurance unmanned aerial vehicle, with endurance measured in dozens of hours and a mix of electro-optical and SIGINT payloads, gives a taste of India’s ambitions in the ISR and armed drone segment. The Arudhra medium power radar and the HTT 40 basic trainer aircraft show that India is deliberately filling out the radar and pilot training segments, where many developing air forces still rely on older imported fleets. Private companies and start-ups, from electronics to hydraulics and software, will try to position themselves as partners for joint development and local assembly in Gulf or African markets.
From an export perspective, Southeast Asian states seek affordable ways to complicate Chinese military planning and secure their coastlines. Gulf countries want multi-layered air defence, long-range precision strike and co-production options that give them more technological sovereignty. African and Latin American air forces are looking for reliable, politically flexible suppliers that can bundle financing, training and industrial participation. India offers competitive pricing, willingness to share technology and a non-aligned political profile that many governments find attractive.
Dubai Airshow 2025 becomes a test of India’s claim that it is no longer just one of the world’s largest arms importers, but an emerging supplier with credible combat systems and an industrial base ready to plug into regional ecosystems. The bilateral talks led by Sanjay Seth, the industry round tables and the flying displays by Tejas and Suryakiran together will form a coordinated pitch to that effect.
Written by Evan Lerouvillois, Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group.
Evan studied International Relations, and quickly specialized in defense and security. He is particularly interested in the influence of the defense sector on global geopolitics, and analyzes how technological innovations in defense, arms export contracts, and military strategies influence the international geopolitical scene.
